


Spin the Spell

by Comicsohwhyohwhy



Category: Marvel, Marvel (Comics), Marvel 616
Genre: ALL THE FLUFF, Everyone is an idiot, Everything is happy, First Kiss, Fluff and Humor, Getting Together, I am lying, I'm Sorry, Love Potion/Spell, Multi, and unicorns, no, no unicorns
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-31
Updated: 2014-12-31
Packaged: 2018-03-04 11:04:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,897
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3065465
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Comicsohwhyohwhy/pseuds/Comicsohwhyohwhy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>Tony inhaled deeply, enjoying how peaceful everything felt. After all, it wasn’t often that the Avengers got a quiet morning, just sitting –</i>
  <br/>
  <i>There was a flash of green light that seemed to burn right through his skull. </i>
</p><p>A magic attack makes things for the Avengers rather complicated. For example, Wolverine just won't stop clinging to Spider-Man. Might it be some sort of love spell?<br/>Tony is sure that him and Steve aren't affected, though. Everyone else disagrees.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Spin the Spell

**Author's Note:**

  * For [laireshi](https://archiveofourown.org/users/laireshi/gifts).



> You wanted fluff, you got it! This takes place in the _New Avengers_ -phase before Civil War, when everything was fun and friendship and bagels. I hope it's fluffy enough :)
> 
> Prompt:  
>  _Pre-CW, the Avengers are hit with some kind of a love spell. Except Tony and Steve think they weren't affected, because they don't notice that anything has changed about them. Surely it can't be that they're oblivious idiots who have been in love with one another for years. (don't look at me, clichés are good)_
> 
> Thanks so much for beta to [Bragi151](http://archiveofourown.org/users/Bragi151/pseuds/Bragi151) and [GerdavR](https://www.fanfiction.net/u/3042146/GerdavR)!

Steve had started a new team of Avengers a few weeks back, and even right now, bruised and drained from their last battle, Tony was as happy as he had ever been.

When Steve had told him about the idea, Tony had doubted him – after all, in his eyes, the last team had failed. They had not managed to care for their friends the way they should have, and Tony reproached himself, really, mostly himself, dearly for that failure. But then, Steve had looked at him on that rooftop, sincere conviction in his blue eyes, and Tony had let down his defenses.

It was Captain America asking him to start another team, after all. What was he supposed to do? Icon of the whole nation, and all that jazz.

Tony sighed, but the corners of his mouth tugged up as he filed a report on the latest attack and ensuing property damage for the NYPD. Who was he kidding? He loved being on the Avengers again, having his friends move into the tower with him, feeling as if he was part of something. But he could really do without all the paperwork, especially early in the morning.

He engrossed himself in the reports and bills again and didn’t even react when he heard the door opening behind him. Suddenly, he felt a hand on his shoulder.

Tony looked up and saw Steve standing there, hair all tousled. He had probably just gotten back from his morning run. In the hand that wasn’t currently gently massaging his shoulder, Steve held a cup of steaming coffee.

Tony felt a radiant smile spread over his face. He reached out for the cup, but Steve grinned and held it just out of reach. “No, Tony, you’re coming to the kitchen, I made scrambled eggs for all of us. You need food. You’re still weak from the battle in the Savage Land.” There was a concerned note in Steve’s voice now, and he looked at Tony searchingly.

Tony made a frustrated noise, but he couldn’t quite keep the warm fluttery feeling in his chest down. Steve was a terrible mother hen, he was perfectly fine again, nothing to worry about. But he had work to do…

He frowned down at his papers, but Steve just started carefully tugging on his shoulder (he was probably scared of hurting Tony somehow, what with all the bruises he had gotten in their last fight), and Tony smelled the coffee, and maybe sitting down with Steve for a moment to have a bite wasn’t the worst idea in the world.

“Okay, okay, I’ll come, you extortioner. But you owe me another sparring lesson for that.”

“Oh, so on top of allowing me to force you to actually ingest food, you want to have me hand your ass to you later? It must be my lucky day!” Tony amiably punched Steve into the shoulder and they went into the kitchen, almost arm in arm.

Peter sat at the table, enthusiastically chewing a mouthful of what Tony suspected were Steve’s scrambled eggs. Tony disentangled his arm from Steve’s and stepped towards him. “What’s up, Pete?”

Pete made a gargled noise of utter contentment when Wolverine entered, looking pissed. “Where’s the beer?” he grumbled.

Steve shot him a stern look. “Logan, it’s still morning. Have some scrambled eggs and a coffee.”

Wolverine rolled his eyes. “Yeah, no. Beer.”

Steve sighed, his eyebrows drawn together disapprovingly, and started piling some plates high with scrambled eggs while Logan shuffled towards one of the storage cupboards. Tony got ready to sit down, mulling one of the reports he had just done over in his head, when Jessica popped her head in the door. She looked crumpled from head to toe, from her violet hoodie to her dotted slippers. “I smell… food. Steve, you playing dad again?” She beamed and pranced into the kitchen, grabbing the cup of coffee Steve had prepared for Tony on the way.

Right, the cup of coffee, he should have gotten that. His stomach clenched wistfully when he smelled the coffee as she slid into a chair next to him. “Hey! That was mine, Jess, get your own!”

Jessica raised her eyebrows. “You mean, that was the cup of coffee your Captain prepared for you? I claimed it. Get another one.”

Tony opened his mouth to protest when Logan grumbled, “Easier to claim the coffee than the Captain from him…” Pete snorted and Tony shook his head exasperatedly when Steve put a plate in front of him. There was a cheerful glint in his eyes.

“You are such children. I’ll make more coffee, nothing to worry about.” He went to the coffee machine, and Tony smiled at his back happily. Then he realised Steve couldn’t even see that, what a waste of his radiant smile, and started tucking into his eggs instead. They were delicious. Steve really was a joy to have around.

For a while, everyone was busy with their food, only the sound of smacking in the air. Then Tony was done with his eggs and leaned back in his chair. He inhaled deeply, enjoying how peaceful everything felt. After all, it wasn’t often that they got a quiet morning, just sitting –

There was a flash of green light that seemed to burn right through Tony’s skull. He raised his arms unsteadily, but before he could react in any other way, it was over. Tony blinked confusedly and noticed that Steve had moved at top-speed and was standing almost in front of him, as if to protect him. He looked around at his other friends.

Wolverine was standing in a puddle, his nose full of foam, because he had been in the process of opening another beer, and the look on his face was quite hilarious, shocked and sad in equal measure. But apart from that, everyone seemed to be fine, if rather bewildered.

Steve shot Tony a searching look and was apparently satisfied with what he saw. “Is everyone okay?”

“This was worse than all those paparazzi flashing their cameras into our faces at all those stupid gala dinners we have to attend…” Jess moaned. “Also… what was it?”

Tony had already taken a little spectrometer out of his pocket and started scanning the environment for traces of an attack. When there was a readout, he cursed quietly.

Steve was standing right behind him, looking over his shoulder. He could feel the heat radiating off him, and the faint smell of the spices he had used when cooking was nice. When Steve talked, Tony felt a warm huff of breath on his neck. “What is it?”

Tony shook his head slightly, as if to chase off a fly. He had better get it together and concentrate on the matter at hand. “There was…,” he started, but immediately broke off when he heard how raspy his voice sounded. What the hell. He cleared his throat and tried again. “There was some sort of magic involved in what just happened. Can’t give you any details just yet, but I think I’d better involve Stephen Strange in this.”

Steve nodded tightly. “Alright, get in touch with him, I’ll contact the Fantastic Four and S.H.I.E.L.D. to see if they know what is going on.”

Tony quickly walked out of the kitchen to contact Stephen on the emergency frequency they had only just installed when they started meeting in their smaller circle. He felt his chest constrict a bit with guilt at Steve not knowing about the whole thing, but at least it had its merits right now. He sent out the signal to summon Strange, and to make sure, he included Reed in the call. Then he went back into the kitchen.

Only to see Steve and Jess staring at Wolverine, who was hugging Peter tightly.

Tony froze in his tracks. Logan was smiling serenely as he had Peter wrapped in his arms. Peter, on the other hand, looked absolutely horrified. “Logan, what…”

Logan just nuzzled closer and almost buried his face in the crook of Peter’s shoulder. His hand was gently stroking Peter’s back (thankfully, his claws weren’t extended, Tony thought with a little shudder). Peter’s eyes were wider than Tony had ever seen them, and he mouthed “what the fuck”.

Steve suddenly let out an incredulous bark of laughter. “Okay, this is evidently not normal. Do you reckon we are dealing with some sort of spell here that messed up Logan’s mind?”

Peter laughed nervously. “I sure as hell hope so. I mean, teasing him is always fun, but only because he kinda hates me…”

Logan opened his eyes and looked at Peter with a completely dopey look on his face. He still had a little foam on his nose. “I don’t hate you, wall-crawler. I like you. I like you a lot.”

Peter grimaced and made an expressive motion which involved sticking his finger down his own throat. Tony couldn’t help but chuckle. “Peter, enjoy it while it lasts! No, seriously, there’s something strange going on here. We should…”

He was interrupted by Steve’s holocommunicator giving off a beep. Steve switched it on and a transparent version of Reed Richardsʼ head hovered in mid-air. Tony stepped closer, knowing that he would be in view for Reed now. “Steve, I got your call.” Reed’s eyes flickered to his for a second, but thankfully he had the common sense not to mention the call he had sent out on the Illuminati’s frequency. “There’s a commotion downtown. My team and I just arrived on the scene. I can’t tell you what’s going on exactly, but there’s magic involved.” Reed looked as if he had bitten into a particularly sour apple and Tony sympathised wholeheartedly.

Steve pressed his lips into a tight line. “Does it look like something we all need to try and contain, or can you handle it?”

Reed looked over his shoulder for a moment, then he ducked his head a little and grimaced. “The being who is doing whatever this is seems to have a lot of power, and some buildings are already damaged. I would suggest you send some back-up in order for us to clean this up fast.”

Steve sighed. “Okay, we’ll be there in a moment.” He switched off the communicator.

Logan was still hugging Peter tightly, who looked as if he didn’t understand the world anymore. “Guyyyys, what do I do about this?”

Steve shot them a look. “Well, we can hardly use Logan in a fight like that, so just try and get rid of him, leave him here and suit up.”

But when Peter tried to disentangle himself from Logan’s hug, Logan made a pathetic little noise and apparently just held on more tightly. Peter sighed and started shuffling towards the door, Wolverine still clinging to him. Tony shook his head. This really wasn’t a sight he had ever expected lay eyes on.

But no time to waste. Tony turned around to disappear into his lab and get his suit. But before he got very far, Steve firmly inserted himself into his path. “Tony, are you sure you’re up for another battle? You’re still healing…”

Tony stared at Steve, and for a moment he felt testy. But then he looked at his friend, the concerned little frown on his face and the affectionate look in his eyes, and he decided that maybe Steve being over-protective was kind of cute after all. “Steve, I am perfectly fine. Also, I don’t know if anyone ever told you about the advantages of wearing armour? I’ll be better protected than any of you.”

Steve’s mouth was still settled in an adorable little pout, but he nodded. “Okay. See you in a moment.”

***

When they arrived at the scene, people were running away in panic. Sue was projecting force fields to protect civilians, while Johnny was flying around what was currently a cloud of dust that probably contained the attacker. Ben was nowhere to be seen, but Reed was standing in the shelter of some cars, fiddling with some scientific equipment. When Tony touched down next to him while Steve was looking for a place to land the Quinjet, he turned around and gave him a relieved smile.

“Tony, so good to see you. I still haven’t managed to get proper readings on the nature of the powers used here, but…” They were interrupted when a green blast almost hit Reed in the head. Tony tackled him and threw him to the ground at the last moment.

He quickly made sure he hadn’t crushed Reed in the suit, then he turned around. And in the middle of a cloud of greenish smoke, he saw the Enchantress.

Tony cursed. The Enchantress was a very powerful sorceress, and he didn’t have her powers exactly mapped out. Usually, she was Thor’s antagonist, and whatever she wanted now probably had something to do with him as well. But Thor, who was also the only one who really knew how to deal with her, wasn’t even with them right now...

Amora had a haughty smile on her face, and Tony had only just managed to draw up some shields that should – hopefully – withstand her magic when a blast was hurtled his way. But before it even hit his shields, there was a blur of movement and he found himself thrown to the ground. Tony coughed and tried to free himself of the weight on top of him when he realised it was Steve who had jumped in the way in order to protect him from the attack.

Steve looked at him worriedly. “Tony, are you alright?”

Tony shook his head disbelievingly. “Remember that conversation about _armour_ we just had? The much more pressing question is: are you alright? And what on earth made you think jumping in the way of an attack aimed at me was a good idea?!” He had already scanned Steve’s vitals, and except for a significantly elevated pulse and heightened biological activity in general he seemed to be fine, thankfully.

Steve smiled at him, and for a moment Tony could do nothing but to smile back. But then he became aware of the fact that they were in the middle of battle again. And sure enough, he heard a warning call from Reed, and then he felt as if every cell in his body was on fire.

***

He woke up to the sound of buildings crumbling in the distance. For a moment, he didn’t know where he was, but somehow, he felt safe. There were strong arms cradling him. He felt a warm hand stroke up and down his arm.

Reluctantly, he opened his eyes, and very close to his face he saw ridiculously blue eyes looking into his. Steve was bent over him, holding him in his arms, and Tony saw the skin on his cheeks crinkle a little as he smiled in relief when he saw that Tony had woken up. He really wanted to place a kiss on that tender skin…

Tony interrupted his own thoughts. _What was wrong with him?_ Of course, some part of him was well aware of the fact that he liked Steve a little too much for his own good. But he had to get a grip on himself. Living in denial was the way to go on that one.

Almost despite himself, he made to get up with a little groan, but Steve wouldn’t lighten his grip on him. His whole body hurt. And then he suddenly became fully aware of the fact that he was out of the suit, only the thin underarmour clinging to his body.

He shivered and looked at Steve confusedly. “Steve, what happened? I…”

Steve, who was still entirely too close to his face, sighed. “Amora must have cast some spell that immediately disabled all tech in the vicinity, including your armour and all of Reed’s gadgetry.” Steve’s eyes darkened. It looked beautiful and a little terrifying. “The spell also seemed to cause you pain, so I had to release the suit with my emergency codes to make sure you were okay. Don’t worry, the suit is here. The heavy hitters outside are trying to contain the situation.” Steve was gently stroking his hand now and Tony swallowed.

He turned his head carefully, a million little dots of fire exploding behind his eyes (he really _really_ hated magic), and saw Reed sitting close to them, looking a little morose. He was straining to look out of the window of what Tony assumed was some sort of office building that they had found shelter in. Thankfully, it seemed to be deserted, so no danger of collateral damage.

Suddenly, Reed beamed out of the window. Tony assumed that he must have seen his wife do something particularly awesome (and Sue was pretty awesome, he had no compunction whatsoever about admitting that). But then, Reed’s expression froze and the fraction of a second later he got hit in the face by another one of those green blasts.

Tony heard himself yell as his friend toppled back slowly, but he braced his hands before he hit the ground and didn’t lose consciousness. Reed shook his head as if to clear it and took a few deep breaths. Tony exhaled slowly. Thank God, he seemed to be okay.

Reed turned his head to look at them. Suddenly, though, his eyes seemed to lose focus and become a little dopey. He got up shakily and started walking towards Steve and him in an almost dream-like fashion.

Tony raised his hands, disentangling himself from Steve with force now and shuffling into a half-sitting position next to Steve. “Oh no. No no no no. Not you too, Reed, ok? Get it together!”

But Reed didn’t even pay him any attention, instead staring at Steve as if he were the most beautiful thing he had ever seen in his life. He got down on his knees in front of Steve and licked his lips, apparently trying to work up the courage to say something. “Steve, I wondered… Do you play chess?”

Steve’s facial expression would have been something to laugh at heartily, except that Tony felt a seething rage at Reed hitting on Steve in front of him like that. How could he… But no, Tony reminded himself sternly, he was being completely irrational, this was some sort of spell and not Reed’s fault, no reason to be jealous. (Also, what was he even thinking, he had no claim over Steve whatsoever.)

Steve opened his mouth, but all that came out of it was a dry little croak. He was spared having to respond and tell Reed about his complete disinterest in chess, though, because at that moment Carol appeared at the window and landed gracefully in the middle of the room. She was carrying Jess. “Guys, what happened here?”

Tony cleared his throat. “Some people” – he shot Reed a look – “seem to have been hit by a spell that addled their minds.”

Carol nodded. “I got as much. Jess’s welcome for me was a little more enthusiastic than I am used to.” Tony looked at Jess, and yes, she also had a rather serene smile on her face.

Jess shot him a mischievous look. “Like hell it was.” Before Carol could say anything else, she basically jumped at her and kissed her. Tony couldn’t stop himself from beaming. Well, this was definitely a pairing he had been rooting for in secret for years.

Reed made a wistful little noise in the back of his throat as he was watching the scene. His eyes flickered back and forth between Carol and Jess and Steve. Tony looked at him sourly. So much for being happy about the effects of the spell for a moment. “Oooo-kay, definitely a love spell, then. I wish Strange would…”

There was a pop and then Strange stood in the middle of the office, his red coat billowing dramatically. Even Tony had to admit Stephen looked damn stylish in his ridiculous attire.

“…arrive. Hello, Stephen.”

Strange nodded at Tony curtly, then started immediately projecting some sort of glowy thing in front of him while mumbling words in some obscure language. “You are all affected except for Carol. I cannot neutralise the effects of the spell right now, but I’ll be back in a moment.”

There was another pop, and then Strange was gone. Tony stared at the spot where he had been a moment before. All affected? Well, Strange’s magic mumbo jumbo must have gone wrong somehow, because he and Steve most certainly weren’t affected. He had detected nothing out of the ordinary in Steve’s behaviour, and Tony himself didn’t feel like hugging Reed or anything, at least not any more than he usually did, so all was fine on that front.

A blast hit the building they were in and everything started shaking. Tony tried to protect his head from the falling debris with his arms. Shit, this was getting dangerous, he should probably get back into the suit…

He inched towards the middle of the room, where Steve had left the parts of his suit on a table, but before he got there, a piece of mortar hit him in the head. He cursed, it really hurt, but before he could check if he had actually gotten injured, Steve was at his side. He looked at him intently and stroked a hand up and down his back. “Tony, are you okay?”

Tony smiled at him gratefully. To have him as a presence at his back was the best thing he could ever have wished for…

Carol cleared her throat and Tony realised Steve and him had been staring at one another for a few seconds without saying anything. “Boys, glad to see you’ve worked it out” – Jess snickered – “but we have a fight to win. I’ll get back into the fray.”

Jess nodded with determination. “Me too.” Somehow, she seemed to be a lot less out of it than Logan had been or Reed was, Tony thought. The spell must have had a slightly different effect on her – maybe because he was pretty positive she had always fancied Carol anyways. Be that as it may, Jess was probably actually useful in a fight despite her condition. (Peter had in all likelihood not even managed to disembark from the Quinjet, with Logan clinging to him as if for dear life.)

“We’ll be right behind you.” Steve’s jaw was set as he picked up his shield. Carol nodded, grabbed Jess by the shoulders and flew out.

Tony had started looking at his suit and sighed. It didn’t work. He had no idea what the Enchantress had done (he really really _really_ hated magic), but this way, he wouldn’t be much use in a fight, especially not one involving magic. “Reed, is your equipment out of order as well?”

Reed was still standing in the middle of the room, a strange smile on his face as he followed Steve with his eyes. Steve was cleaning his shield with slow motions and looking at Tony with a worried expression.

Tony gave up trying to get through to Reed. The man was apparently completely useless and would simply endanger himself and everyone else, should he get into the fight. And maybe that was where he could become useful, after all, even if he hated it. He shrugged and looked Steve in the eyes. “Suit doesn’t work anymore. Maybe I should stay here, take care of Reed.”

Steve looked relieved. “Yes, do that.” He finished cleaning his shield and got ready to jump out of the window. But then he hesitated. “Tony…”

“Yeah?” Tony hated letting him go, he really hated it, he felt he had to be there to take care of Steve, but he knew fully well that Steve wouldn’t appreciate the sentiment, so he tried to bite it down and sound casual.

Steve took two big steps and suddenly he was standing too close to him. There was a strange expression on his face. Then he leaned in, and his lips touched Tony’s. Tony inhaled sharply. It felt amazing. He only just stopped himself from whining a little when Steve broke the contact, after only a second, then turned around and jumped out of the window.

Tony stared after him. What had just happened? No. This had to be the love spell after all. Maybe Strange had been right and Steve was affected. That had to be it. Steve couldn’t mean that, it was impossible.

He turned around, as if in slow-motion, and suddenly realised that Reed was still standing there and staring at him with wide eyes. The expression on his face was hilariously heart-broken.

Tony sighed and tried to school his face into an understanding expression.

***

After Thor turned up, it didn’t take long for his friends to defeat the Enchantress. Tony spent the time trying to comfort Reed, who felt as if the love of his life had been taken from him. It did, however, not help that he thought Tony was the one who had taken it, so Tony was incredibly glad to see Sue striding towards them as soon as the Enchantress had been taken care of. At least Reed also seemed to still be in love with Sue, so he finally stopped sniffling when she embraced and kissed him.

Stephen was in the process of cooking up some sort of antidote to the spell, and the way he was bending over a bubbling cauldron in the middle of New York City was a sight to behold. Some of the people affected were already lining up, waiting for their dose. Steve and Tony were standing next to Stephen with Thor. The God of Thunder had a somber expression on his face.

“Friends, I am truly sorry. The Enchantress is a vile creature.”

Tony smiled. “Well, making us fancy random people certainly isn’t the worst attack we have ever had to deal with.” He shot Jess a look, who was the first to drink a cup of the antidote. Carol was standing very close to her throughout it.

Thor was still clearly unhappy that one of his old foes had caused the Avengers and Fantastic Four distress. Tony quickly turned to Strange to dissipate the tension. “Stephen, have you gotten a clear diagnosis of the effects of the spell now?”

Strange frowned a little. “I should hope so, Tony, or I wouldn’t have taken it upon myself to fabricate an antidote. It looks like the spell was unidirectional and inversely proportional.”

Steve looked at Strange intently. “Which means?”

“It means that the effects differed depending on whether it drew you to an object you liked to begin with or not. It especially distorted the minds of the people who suddenly felt attracted to someone they had never even considered that way before. However, if the focus fell on someone who was already the object of affection to begin with, it mostly just lowered people’s inhibitions.”

Tony nodded. Well, he had thought something of the sort, and it explained why people like Logan and Reed had become completely useless. So now he certainly knew that Reed wasn’t actually interested in Steve, how good to be rid of that big worry, he thought ironically. He smiled at Reed as his friend drank down the antidote, Sue holding his hand.

Next up was Steve, and when he saw him drink down the antidote in two big gulps, he couldn’t stop a strange sense of bereavement from settling into his stomach. He swallowed. He knew he wasn’t being fair, of course Steve wouldn’t want anything from him, and he was damn glad to have his friend back. But he couldn’t quite shake off the memory of Steve’s lips on his.

When he was done, Steve walked over to him, a guarded look in his eyes. Tony knew that the effects of the antidote were apparently immediate, so he had probably just realised that he had kissed Tony while under the spell and felt ashamed now. Of course.

Tony did his best to school his face into a neutral expression and carefully laid his hand on Steve’s shoulder. When Steve made no move to shake him off, he squeezed it encouragingly. He had to show Steve that he was fully aware of the fact that his friend had just acted on an impulse that wasn’t his own. And that he was more than happy with being back to being friends.

Tony couldn’t bear looking into Steve’s sad blue eyes for long – damn it, he was _really sad_ about having kissed Tony now, this was bad – so instead, he looked at Reed, who had already taken out his infopad and was probably running calculations trying to figure out what exactly had happened to him and everyone else. Of course, Reed couldn’t just leave that to the magic wielders.

Reed was immediately deeply immersed in whatever he was doing, and when Sue nudged him in the shoulder, he flinched. He shot Steve and Tony and glance and frowned. Sue rolled her eyes and whispered something into his ear.

“Oh.” Reed cleared his throat. “Oh. Well, I’m sorry, Steve, Tony. I think I might have behaved in a very uncharacteristic manner.”

Steve only drew his eyes away from Tony’s with a significant effort – Tony swallowed again – then he smiled at Reed. “We’re good, Reed. Nothing to worry about.”

Reed smiled back, then he looked at Tony. “Do you want to get the antidote as well now?”

Tony grinned and shook his head. “Nah, Reed, I’m good. No need to waste any of it. And you should go back to your lab and practice your chess moves. You know we’re at C4…”

Reed’s eyes lit up. “Oh, yes, do you fancy continuing our game now?”

Sue shook her head. “Tony, no. I know you know how to make my husband lose all focus. But no. You should get the antidote.”

Now Tony was honestly confounded. What were they on about? He was completely fine. Yes, okay, Steve had obviously been affected, or he would never have kissed him, but he had already taken a cup of Strange’s concoction. And Tony himself certainly wasn’t affected. He told Sue and Reed as much.

Reed looked at him like a confused puppy, pretty much. “But…”

Steve cleared his throat. “Tony, can I talk to you for a moment? In private?”

Tony frowned. This was probably going to be the I-am-not-into-you-sorry-for-hitting-on-you-while-under-the-influence-of-a-spell-talk. Oh, how he loved those. But he obediently took a few steps away from the group with Steve.

Steve held out his hand, and Tony saw that he had another cup with the antidote hidden in it. “Drink it. I want to try something and I have to be sure you’re… you.”

Tony looked into Steve’s eyes – damn it, why were they so very blue. Well, if Steve really wanted him to drink the thing, maybe he should just do it. There could be no harm in it and he really wanted to wipe that sad and anxious expression off of Steve’s face.

Slowly, he took the cup and drank the liquid inside. He shuddered a little, it was disgusting. When he had finished, he felt no change.

Steve was watching him intently, and when nothing happened, he exhaled slowly. “Tony, I… You know I kissed you while under the spell?”

Tony grimaced. He really wasn’t up for this conversation. “Steve, listen, I know that it was just the spell, don’t worry.” There was a sinking feeling in his stomach as he said the words. Saying it out loud sucked, even if he harboured no illusions about Steve’s true feelings.

Steve looked even sadder for a moment, then he seemed to gather up his courage. “No, see, that’s the thing…”

He fell silent again. Tony stared at him. What was he getting at? He couldn’t…

Steve drew a deep breath. “What I’m trying to say is, I… liked it.”

Tony still stared. His brain seemed to have gone into sleep mode.

Steve grimaced. It was adorable. “I’m not very good at this. I want to ask you if… if you’d like to do that again sometime.”

Tony still felt completely frozen inside. He swallowed and licked his lips. “Are you sure those aren’t just the after-effects of the spell talking?”

Steve smiled nervously. “Very sure. I’ve wanted to do that for years. The spell just suddenly gave me the courage to go through with it. But, Tony… if you don’t feel that way…”

Tony laughed, and it sounded almost hysterical. If he didn’t feel that way. Steve was asking him if he would reject him. Tony Stark, rejecting Steve Rogers, and Steve seemed to think of it as a real possibility. The world was such a strange place.

Tony knew that now it was his turn. He leaned in, very carefully, expecting rejection at any moment. He still didn’t quite believe that Steve really meant this. Maybe the effects of the love spell hadn’t yet fully worn off, after all. But Stephen had assured him they had, and Stephen was to be trusted, usually...

And still, for some reason, Steve didn’t tense or try to evade Tony as he leant closer. Tony saw his eyes fluttering half-shut, long lashes casting a shadow on his cheeks. And then their lips touched.

Steve’s kiss was soft, and after a moment, he began using a little tongue and teeth, very gently nibbling on Tony’s lower lip, and Tony felt as if all air was pressed out of his body. His mind was still reeling with questions. Steve couldn’t… Why… But there was one thing he could not question, and that was the feeling of Steve’s lips on his, and after a while, Steve brought a hand up to gently cup his face, cradling it as if he were something to be cherished, with all the time and care in the world. And maybe he should just abandon himself to that feeling, enjoy it while it lasted, instead of overthinking it. A breathy sigh escaped Tony’s lips and he felt Steve’s mouth quirk up a little.

After what felt like an eternity, they parted. But Steve left his hand on Tony’s face, still cupping it affectionately, and there was something in his eyes that said he really meant this. That he genuinely thought there was a future for them and that he was already picturing it in his mind. Tony smiled at Steve and was sure he looked completely dopey. But he didn’t care. He truly didn’t care.

At the edge of his vision, he saw Peter running past them, laughing, Wolverine on his heels, his claws out. So that had gone back to normal then. Somewhere, in the distance, he saw Carol and Jess hugging tightly, Carol carding a hand through Jess’s hair. So that had finally happened, the way it should have years ago.

Steve had also looked at Carol and Jess, and when he looked back at Tony, there was pure happiness in his eyes. He wrapped Tony in a tight hug and began mirroring Carol’s gesture. It sent little sparks of electricity through Tony’s scalp, and from there, through his whole body.

And right this moment, everything was alright with the world.


End file.
